


Is it Christmas?

by steveandbucky



Series: Ace!Bucky Verse [3]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Asexual Bucky, Christmas, Christmas Dinner, Christmas Fluff, Established Relationship, Fluff, Holidays, M/M, Meeting the Parents, Post-Serum Steve Rogers, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-23
Updated: 2015-12-23
Packaged: 2018-05-08 18:08:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,979
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5507702
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/steveandbucky/pseuds/steveandbucky
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bucky accidentally meets Steve's mother when she unexpectedly turns up at Steve's apartment, and she then invites Bucky to have Christmas dinner with her and Steve.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Is it Christmas?

**Author's Note:**

> for [Kat](http://worthystevie.tumblr.com), my favourite asexual <3  
> part 3 of the ace!bucky verse, but can be read on its own. just a quick little holiday drabble :)

 

 

“Can you come downstairs?” Bucky says into the phone as soon as Steve picks up. “I need a hand,”

He looks at the time, blinking in confusion. Having spent the entire day at his desk, working on projects with fast approaching deadlines, he’d nearly forgotten that Bucky had offered to drop by in the evening and bring dinner.

“A hand with what?” Steve asks, tucking the phone between his ear and his shoulder. He grabs a jacket and his keys before he leaves the house.

“Just come and you’ll see.”

The line goes dead and Steve puts his phone away as he hurries down the stairs only to find Bucky standing by his car, a small, live Christmas tree next to him.

“You like it?” Bucky grins, eyes shining. “I noticed you kinda forgot about it, so I went and got one.”

Steve nods, smiling softly. He’s been buried knee-deep in his work, completing one minor commission after another big project, and dealing with a long line of impatient clients, and, yeah, maybe he had forgotten to get a Christmas tree, even as the holiday is only two weeks away.

“I love it. Thanks, Buck,”

“No need to thank me,” Bucky pats his cheek. “Just carry it up so we can decorate it!”

He goes to retrieve a big bag of Thai takeout from his car, as well as a few carrier bags, then makes his way up to Steve’s apartment, clicking his fingers at the man and telling him to hurry up. Steve shakes his head, laughing quietly as he follows Bucky up the stairs.

They set it up in the corner of his living room, placing it on an empty cardboard box; the entire thing is less than four feet tall, but it’s perfect.

“Time to make this place a little more Christmassy,” Bucky says, pulling out two felt red-and-white Santa hats from one of the carrier bags, placing one on Steve’s head and wearing the other himself.

“What else you got in there?” Steve asks, and immediately regrets his question when Bucky pulls out two matching sweaters, in knitted Christmas patterns. For the dogs.

He insists that the weather is cold and Lilo and Stitch are in need of protection in the form of knitted sweaters, while struggling to get the dogs to actually wear them. It’s actually a load of bullshit, because he then proceeds to take twenty pictures of them, showing them to Steve and saying, “Look how cute!”

Steve hums in agreement while digging around in an old box, looking for the decorations he’d put away last year.

Bucky puts on a playlist of Christmas songs, a wide variety from different decades and genres, while they start decorating the tree, with mismatched colourful bubbles and shiny red and gold tinsel, then drape a pair of lights over the windows. Bucky stands back and admires the view then congratulates himself and his boyfriend on a job well done.

“Come on,” he grabs Steve’s hand and drags him to the kitchen. “I bought chocolate syrup to make mochas, and a whole box of gingerbread cookies.”

 

~~

 

Their weekend morning routine is a simple one: wake up early, take the dogs out for a walk, pick up coffee on their way home and then head back to bed, staying there until they got hungry enough to be motivated to get up again in search of food. Bucky can’t actually remember the last time he spent a free weekend at his own apartment, but he prefers staying at Steve’s, where he’s in the company of two big cuddly dogs and an even bigger, cuddlier man. Of course that means waking up earlier than he’d like, but he doesn't mind that much.

This particular morning, Bucky wakes up to sunlight streaming through the window, and finds the space in the bed next to him empty, and a note on the pillow next.

 

_Morning, Bucky Bear_

_Took the dogs for their walk. Didn’t wanna wake you up, you looked like you needed a lie in. I’ll bring coffee and donuts for breakfast :)_

_Love you xx_

 

Bucky grins like an idiot while he reads the note, then folds it and tucks it in his wallet for safe-keeping. He checks the time and guesses Steve will be back soon enough, so he drags himself out of bed and heads to the living room. He’s lounging on the couch scrolling through Facebook, wearing nothing but his underwear and Steve’s fluffy bathrobe when there’s a key in the door and in walks – _not_ Steve.

Definitely not Steve, unless something went horribly wrong during the walk and Steve aged twenty years and turned into a woman.

“Well, hello,”

Bucky stares at her, frozen in his spot and eyes wide open. “Hi,”

The woman places a couple of bags by the door, takes off her coat and her scarf and makes her way to the living room. Whoever it is, it’s not an intruder. Which means –

Shit.

“My keys worked, so I can’t be in the wrong house, and you seem very comfortable here, so you can’t be in the wrong house, either,” she smiles a little, clearly amused by the situation. “My guess is that you’re probably dating my son.”

Shit. Shit. Shit.

Bucky is wearing nothing but his underwear and _Steve’s bathrobe_ , lying on the couch, facing none other than _Steve’s mother_. Oh God, she’s gonna get the wrong idea. _Why do people always get the wrong idea?_

“Um,” he scrambles to his feet, his brain finally catching up. “I’m just gonna-” he gestures towards the hallway.

Sarah Rogers smiles even wider, and Bucky wants the ground to open up and swallow him down. He rushes to the bedroom and changes into his clothes from the day before, which are thankfully clean enough to be presentable. Then he takes a deep breath and heads back to find her in the kitchen, making tea.

She smiles kindly at him and extends her hand, introducing herself as Sarah and saying she’s happy to meet him.

“I’m Bucky,” he says as he shakes her hand. “And yes, I am dating Steve,” he adds as an afterthought, even though it feels like pointing out the obvious at this point.

Then he has a momentary panic of _“SHIT, IS STEVE OUT TO HIS MOTHER?”_ before he remembers that yes, he is, and breathes a sigh of relief.

“You’re not living here, are you?” she asks him after offering him tea, which Bucky accepts only because he thinks it’d be rude not to. “Because I’d be very upset if Steve neglected to mention that he has a live-in boyfriend.”

Bucky shakes his head.

“Uh, no, I’m not. We’ve only been going out since, um, October?” he says as he shuffles from foot to foot, unsure how to stand, then crosses his arms across his chest. Casually.

“That’s two months now, right? Oh, he’s gonna get an earful when I see him.”

Bucky laughs, the sound startled out of him. “He took the dogs out for a walk, he’ll be back soon,” he says, meaning if Steve doesn’t get home ASAP he’s gonna get another earful later on.

Sarah nods. “Well, in the meantime, why don’t you tell me about yourself, Bucky?”

They sit at the kitchen table, sipping tea and making chit chat about this and that. Sarah tells him about her last-minute holiday shopping, and what a nightmare it is, and Bucky accidentally blurts out that he has no idea what to get Steve.

She nods, and with a solemn expression on her face says, “Well, you know, ugly holiday sweaters are always a classic.”

Bucky grins and tells her, “You know what, you’re right,”

“One with reindeer maybe, or those tacky flashing lights,”

Bucky pictures Steve in it and starts laughing, Sarah joining him.

She’s a lot like Steve, Bucky thinks, with short blonde hair falling on her shoulders and blue eyes shining as she speaks, but she’s also kind and witty, and strangely enough, he finds her company comforting, and doesn’t feel so tense anymore.

“Buck?” Steve’s voice floats through the apartment as the front door opens and closes, followed by a couple of barks. Lilo and Stitch appear in the kitchen then, running towards Sarah to demand to be pet.

“Ma?” Steve asks as he enters the kitchen, his eyes growing comically wide. “What-”

“I stopped by to drop off some things and met your boyfriend,” she smiles wryly at her son, getting up to pull him into a hug. “Whose existence you failed to mention,”

Steve’s whole face starts turning pink, as he hugs her back and shoots a panicked look to Bucky over her shoulder, who just shrugs and grins at him.

“Uh, I was just...”

“Save it,” Sarah rolls her eyes at him. She goes to retrieve a food container and returns a moment later, handing it to Bucky. “I made brownies for him,” she jerks her thumb at Steve, “but you can have them,”

Bucky laughs and thanks her while Steve buries his face in his hands.

“Right, I gotta get going. I hope to see you two soon,” she says with a pointed look at Steve and he nods quickly in response.

Steve grabs her coat for her and walks her to the door, Lilo and Stitch following him closely, probably thinking they’re going out for a walk again.

“You know I’m not above saying I told you so,”

“I know, Ma,”

“Good. Because I did tell you so.”

“Yes, I know.”

Bucky bites down into his bottom lip to keep himself from laughing at the conversation he's overhearing, and right there and then decides that he likes Steve’s mom.

“Well, then, I expect the both of you for dinner on Christmas,” she says, addressing both men.

Bucky grins at her, nodding. “That’d be lovely, Sarah,”

She waves goodbye to him, pecks Steve’s cheek and pets both dogs before she leaves. The expression on Steve’s face when he joins Bucky on the couch is pathetic, mouth twisted into a sad pout and eyebrows knitted together. Bucky can’t help but laugh.

“I want to die,”

“God, you’re so dramatic.” Bucky grins, handing him one of the paper coffee cups Steve has brought them, and reaching for one of the mini donuts for himself.

“Come on, that was so awkward!” Steve throws an arm in the air.

Bucky raises an eyebrow at him. “Stevie, honey, just how would you react if _you_ were in my bathrobe, in my apartment when _my_ mother unexpectedly showed up?”

Steve’s eyes grow wide again, then his whole face turns into an embarrassed cringe. “Oh, God. Oh, no. Really?”

Bucky nods, patting him on the shoulder. “Relax, it was fine. I like her. She’s nice. And funny.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. And I think she likes me too, if the brownies are any indication.”

“I think it is.” Steve smiles then. “You really want to come have Christmas dinner with me and my mom?”

"Yeah, if it’s okay with you. Not like I have any other plans.”

“You’re not doing something with your family?”

“Not really,” Bucky breathes out a sigh and changes the subject. “Why didn’t you tell her about us, anyway?”

Steve leans back, resting his head on the back of the couch. “I wanted you to meet her properly. I don’t usually introduce people I date to my mom, so it’s kind of a special thing, you know?”

Bucky hums for a moment, then sips the rest of his coffee and steals the last donut. “Well, sorry it happened this way, but then again maybe you should’ve warned me that there was a chance she’d turn up here.”

Steve nods, looking all serious. He puts his cup back on the coffee table and turns to face Bucky, and the mischievous glint in his eye is all the warning Bucky gets before he’s tackled onto the couch, being tickled viciously, giggling and squealing until he’s all out of breath, begging for Steve to stop.

 

~~

 

They make it to the mall in half an hour, despite all the traffic, and Clint looks positively proud of himself for that. Steve catches his eye and raises an eyebrow as if to say ‘See what I meant about his driving?’ and Bucky just widens his eyes and nods, earning the barest of smiles from Steve.

“So what’s the big mission here?” Steve asks as they make their way through the main entrance doors.

It’s busy inside, loud and noisy; a cacophony of children screaming as they run around, teenagers laughing and yelling at each other, exasperated parents and in the background, and happy holiday songs playing from the speakers.

Clint grimaces. “Nat said I need pants that aren’t sweatpants for a Christmas party she’s dragging me to,” he says, sounding pained.

Steve hums, and makes a vague comment about Natasha sending Clint shopping on his own being a mistake.

“Hey, that’s why I got you guys,”

“Yay for us,” Bucky deadpans. “But I gotta go find something first,”

He turns around and takes off, feeling only a little bad to be leaving Steve alone with Clint, while the latter grumbles about having to buy pants and makes vague threats of turning off his hearing aids because it’s so damn noisy in there. He wanders through the rest of the mall on his own, coming across a store that sells handmade knitted things and buys a sweater with a Christmas tree design on it, along with 3D baubles. Then he feels bad for getting Steve something so terrible so he buys another sweater, this one thick and soft and pale blue, and a matching pair of a scarf and mittens in a deeper shade, mostly because he thinks Steve doesn’t dress warm enough for the weather they’re having.

It takes Bucky an hour to finish up, and he circles back to the first floor to find the pair ready to head back home, a few carrier bags in their hands.

“Is that my present?” Steve asks, his eyes shining with excitement. “Can I see it?”

“Is it Christmas?”

Steve pouts childishly, but Bucky does not give in. Instead he links their hands together and starts following Clint out the door, who all but runs in his hurry to get out of there.

 

~~

 

“Oh, he was a nightmare as a child, don’t let him convince you otherwise,”

Steve buries his face in his hands, watching as his mother and his boyfriend cackle up over childhood stories no one asked to hear.

Well, Bucky asked. And Sarah helpfully supplied.

“Once, and this was right after Joe passed away,” Sarah pauses to take a sip of her wine, breaking eye contact for a moment. “He found one of my scarves, made a cape out of it and jumped off the tree in the backyard, thinking he could fly. I was in the kitchen making dinner and I hear this loud _squeak_ and rush out to see what happened,” she grins at Steve, expression fond, “And there he was, lying in a great pile of leaves. Funniest sight I’d seen in ages.”

Bucky laughs again, his eyes squinting and his nose scrunching up. It’s the most adorable of his expressions, Steve thinks, but turns his head to shoot a playful glare at his mother instead.

“Yeah, what a great parent you are,” he quips. “You were laughing when your child was in pain,”

“Oh, stop being so dramatic, you were fine,” Sarah waves a dismissive hand at him. “The leaves cushioned the fall, thankfully, but then he started crying when I scolded him.”

“Oh, God, that’s such a dumb thing to do.”

“I was _a kid_.”

“How old were you?” Bucky asks, still grinning in amusement.

“I think…five, maybe six at most? Not the brightest tool in the shed,” Sarah stage-whispers to Bucky, who just chuckles in response.

Steve rolls his eyes for the umpteenth time that night.

“Oh, come on now, I’m only joking,” Sarah gets to her feet and cups his face in her soft hands, placing a kiss to his temple. “You were such a smart boy. One of the brightest in his class, actually.”

Steve cringes, his cheeks flooding with colour and Sarah ruffles his hair before she starts clearing the table. Bucky, sitting across from him, smiles at him for a long moment, his pale grey eyes soft and fond, before he gets to his feet to start helping her. She protests, but they both insist, and tell her to go rest while they start washing up.

Bucky grabs a dishtowel and slides up next to him to start drying the plates and glasses. He knocks his hip into Steve’s and grins when Steve looks up at him. “Love you,” he whispers.

Steve’s heart starts racing in his chest. He glances down at his soapy hands, completely overwhelmed, before he lifts his head and leans over to place a soft peck against Bucky’s lips before whispering back, “Love you too.”

They find Sarah curled up on the armchair with a blanket, ready to hit play on _How The Grinch Stole Christmas_ , and settle together on the bigger couch to watch the movie, pleasantly full from the wonderful during the meal and dessert, and buzzing with alcohol after the many bottles of wine they had.

Sarah says she’s turning in after the movie is over, exhausted after a long day, and hugs them both before wishing them goodnight and heading up the stairs. Steve grabs their coats from the hangers by the door and turns to Bucky to ask, “Wanna head over to Clint and Nat’s and continue drinking?”

“Will that include more stories from your childhood?”

Steve smiles as he shakes his head. “No, but I’ll tell you the story of how I met Natasha. It’s a good one, I promise.”

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> i just really love sarah rogers you guys
> 
> also, i'm on [tumblr!](http://steveandbucky.tumblr.com)


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